Happy Alternatives

[koko-on-da-forumz]

We got the Nier raids. Supposedly Yoshi-P put him on a short leash.

Unironically, I love the Nier raid story because it just makes no sense. The final scene is supposed to be dramatic but it falls so flat that you end up laughing. Incredible stuff, real The Room levels of what.

His writing style is a lot more suited to an expansion than to a patch story, but I also think that FFXIV as a game just doesn't have enough to it for him to play with, ludonarratively. Best you can do is some dialogue options that branch in no meaningful ways, and some fights you're guaranteed to clear blindfolded. He's best doing his own games.

Imagining the elden ring playthrough of an average ffxiv player is a fun exercise.

[Kills tutorial mob]

Phew, that was stressful. Gonna log off and watch paint dry for a bit to calm down.

[Isala]

Unironically, I love the Nier raid story because it just makes no sense. The final scene is supposed to be dramatic but it falls so flat that you end up laughing. Incredible stuff, real The Room levels of what.

His writing style is a lot more suited to an expansion than to a patch story, but I also think that FFXIV as a game just doesn't have enough to it for him to play with, ludonarratively. Best you can do is some dialogue options that branch in no meaningful ways, and some fights you're guaranteed to clear blindfolded. He's best doing his own games.



[Kills tutorial mob]

Phew, that was stressful. Gonna log off and watch paint dry for a bit to calm down.

It makes me giggle that you specified "mob" and not "boss", because that's even more accurate.

[Rueby]

When the Grim Dawn expansion releases that will likely see me step away from FF for a while, too.

Wait there's a Grim Dawn expansion coming up??

[Carin-Eri]

I genuinely don't get a lot of free time for gaming and devoted that time to FFXIV to be honest. But I occasionally revisit the game I played for twelve years before a combination of burnout and disdain of it's business model led me to listen to my best friend's suggestions (backed up with screenshots) to try FFXIV.

That previous game was STO (Star Trek Online). I still log in very occasionally - mostly to see what Stipend I've amassed (since I purchased a lifetime subscription shortly after I started playing). However - the rest of what I say here is entirely personal opinion based on my own experience of the game: the game lost all appeal to me as the frequency of the new content decreased and they turned their attention VERY much to lootboxes and stupidly expensive "bundles" (often to the value of £300) of in-game items.
It also became catastrophically easy. The problem with having a hyper-focus on selling stuff is that what you're selling has to be better than what came before it. STO did absolutely nothing to keep the powercreep in check; a piece of raid-type content that, a few years ago, took 25 minutes to complete took all of 12 seconds the last time I played it.
And that Stipend? Healthy amount of in-game currency..... but I have no interest in buying anything; both because nothing in the game interests me and I abhor the idea of basically encouraging their business model.

I could carry on but that isn't what this thread is about. Again, I still log in from time-to-time but nine times out of ten just feel nostalgic for what the game once was and log out again.

[Themarvin]

Everyone who really likes video games should play Baldurs Gate 3, it is really a good game that you easy enough can lose 3-500 hours in.

[Sivante]

Imagining the elden ring playthrough of an average ffxiv player is a fun exercise.

Annnnnnd that's my new game for the weekend. Imagining FFXIV players first playthroughs of Elden Ring is delightful and I'm a fool for not having thought of it. Thannnnk you vvery much.

[LilimoLimomo]

Annnnnnd that's my new game for the weekend. Imagining FFXIV players first playthroughs of Elden Ring is delightful and I'm a fool for not having thought of it. Thannnnk you vvery much.

Honestly, I find so much joy in watching unskilled players play games. Gaming has been my main hobby for decades now so the conventions of games as well as the associated problem-solving comes incredibly naturally to me, and it can be easy to forget just how different that can be for people with different life experiences. Watching the way someone who lacks my skills and experience engages with the game really gets me out of my own head; it's both educational and grounding, and I get a genuine kick out of both of those things.

(Probably especially because I've worked as a game designer and have a passion for seeing how the design of games can either lead players towards or away from success in various contexts.)

[PercibelTheren]

I've been playing Darkest Dungeon II, Vintage Story and Rimworld. Gearing up to also play some No Man's Sky with my younger brothers.

[lolnotacat]

Unironically, I love the Nier raid story because it just makes no sense. The final scene is supposed to be dramatic but it falls so flat that you end up laughing. Incredible stuff, real The Room levels of what.

It does...mostly... if you know the whole Nier story, which IMO is a failure since requiring that much homework to understand something which is mean to attract new people will only push them further away. I love Nier and the off-the-wall aspect of the story telling. In a lot of ways it feels like a Greek tragedy with how things develop, but Yoko Taro needed to be a little less Yoko Taro with the story.

[Sivante]

Honestly, I find so much joy in watching unskilled players play games. Gaming has been my main hobby for decades now so the conventions of games as well as the associated problem-solving comes incredibly naturally to me, and it can be easy to forget just how different that can be for people with different life experiences. Watching the way someone who lacks my skills and experience engages with the game really gets me out of my own head; it's both educational and grounding, and I get a genuine kick out of both of those things.

(Probably especially because I've worked as a game designer and have a passion for seeing how the design of games can either lead players towards or away from success in various contexts.)

100%. I don't say it with any malice or judgement, but watching a less versed player go up against a boss I'm stuck on really opens my head up. That and it's just downright enjoyable watching them experiment and go through the cycle of suffering, into formulating a plan, into executing it.

My play: Ret, Ret, Ret, opening, exploit -> trigger grease wire, punish, push, lost momentum begin to ret, ret, repeat cycle for opening.
Boring, Sterile, clinical.

Their play: IS THAT GOD? AM I FIST FIGHTING GOD RIGHT NOW? ... ... I guess I'm gonna go punch god.
Exhilarating, fresh, excited.

Let alone, yeah, seeing how the games design directs them and seeing if they caught it, or if the design didn't quite capture their attention enough.